Black History Month offers a wonderful opportunity to appreciate the incredible accomplishments, vibrant culture, and meaningful traditions of the Black community. This time of celebration is open to all, regardless of race or background, and is a chance to honor the diversity and resilience that make us stronger together.
Throughout February, we celebrated Black History Month with daily tributes on social media and campus, Friday trivia, and a Black History Spirit dress week. In a powerful conclusion to the month, Arts students organized the Bronco Entertainment Television (BET) Awards on Feb. 29 to honor accomplished African Americans in the entertainment industry. These efforts serve as a reminder of the importance of celebrating and recognizing the contributions of diverse communities.
The pre-show consisted of an entrepreneurial showcase, including student-run businesses like Royal Treasure Pastries by Korria Gordon (12) and Monarx Clothing by Lance White (12). These businesses proudly displayed and sold their products, allowing them to demonstrate their hard work and get some business. Students and staff gathered in hundreds, ready to show their support and excited to watch the program. The program showcased various talents, including spoken-word poetry, musical numbers, skits, and more.
Creating, organizing, and performing a complex program is challenging. The cast worked numerous hours to perfect their acts and presentations, ensuring the production would be flawless. In the weeks leading up to the show, the cast practiced every day until 5:30 PM. Their tireless efforts paid off, as they put together an outstanding production in just a month of planning!
The cast of the show found great satisfaction in proudly showcasing and paying tribute to their culture. Through their performance, they connected with their roots and expressed the significance of Black History Month to them.
To Terrolyn Woodridge (12), Black History Month is a time to celebrate and take pride in Black individuals’ achievements. It is a time to shed light on the struggles of people of color in the past and how they’ve grown and become more than just history since then. They’re now making a new history, one to inspire and encourage new generations to come.
“[Black History Month] gives us a time to look back on all the struggles we’ve faced and allows us to grow and move forward. It also gives us a time to celebrate and commemorate all that we’ve accomplished as a Black culture,” Woodridge (12) said.
While participating in the BET Awards, Woodridge aspired to exhibit her Black heritage and embrace influential Black figures’ contributions to the modern world. She also hopes to honor the determination of her ancestors and the numerous Black individuals who were mistreated in our society’s past.
Andrea Condol (12), another Black History Month Program performer, also believes February is a time to participate and connect with one’s culture. She personally choreographed the hip-hop number performed in the show and participated in all three of the dance numbers in the program. She also performed the solo in the song “Stand Up” by Cynthia Erivo.
“I just want to share a piece of our culture, just like inviting people in and showing them what Black culture is all about,” Condol (12) said.
Black History Month, to Condol specifically, is a time for celebration. She believes by honoring the month and the program, she and her peers got to commemorate and acknowledge Black heritage in the past and present. She loves to share that pride with anyone and everyone, if possible.
One of the show’s central themes was celebrating Black entertainers, performers, and athletes of today. For each category, a speaker read out three nominations, and a clip for each nominee was then played on the big screens.
After the clips played, the speaker announced the “winner.” Coco Jones won Best New Artist, Tyler James Williams won Best Actor, Taraji P. Henson won Best Actress, The Color Purple won Best Movie, Jayden Daniels won Best Sportsman, and Angel Reese won Best Sportswoman.
To take it a step further, a winner look-alike would come to the stage from the audience, accepting the award and even giving a small acceptance speech. It was such a fun and creative way to recognize the top Black entertainers of this time!
Overall, the Bronco Entertainment Television Awards was a success! The show’s cast felt privileged to be part of such a spectacular production and were very excited to have the chance to embrace and honor their legacy.
